Life After Death
by Rokudaime56
Summary: At the climax of the Fourth Great Shinobi War, Naruto dies in battle, ensuring peace. He goes to Soul Society in order to help maintain peace, but he seems to have gained the attention of a certain evil mastermind. Will Naruto be able to stop another?
1. Death and the Beginning

**(A/N: Well, it's me again with the next best hit! Anyway, I've been stuck on a massive case of writers block, so I decided I might as well whip this up. Seriously this time though. This will be perhaps my first completely serious story in which I have planned almost everything together. Things will be different, some things the same, and all in all a good story should be born. But, enough with my constant drabble, enjoy the world as Naruto take the afterlife by storm! This fic will start off not all too long before the Turn Back the Pendulum Arc and should hopefully make its way past all that Aizen schmuck. And it'll probably make it farther than the Winter War, how fun. Now, this won't come into play for quite a few chapters, but Naruto is the main character. As a warning, this first chapter may be a bit confusing Just something I think you should know.****)**

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Naruto...obviously.

Inspired by_ Soul Chess_, by draconichero20

* * *

"_You're still acting like a child. You're living in a fantasy world. You need to come to terms with the fact that you, as a ninja, will be forced to make impossible decisions like this._"

I was a fool, to believe what I did. And it almost cost me my life, numerous times. But nonetheless I simply could not accept it for the life of me. I knew you were right, of course. How could you not be?

Ne, Itachi-san?

"_We are but men, drawn to act in the name of revenge we deem to be justice. But when we call our vengeance justice, it only breeds more revenge… forging the first link in the chains of hatred._"

You were right, Nagato. When wronged, when something deemed precious is taken, a man will deliver justice to those who wronged. An act of revenge. No matter how minuscule the act, revenge is revenge. And from that revenge, the never ending cycle of hatred begins and continues. I felt this...when you took Jiraiya-sensei from us. I felt this when that damned Madara killed Tsunade. I felt it when Hinata fell in battle, taken by the one I once deemed my rival and friend.

No matter how deep inside it was, I still felt the ever present temptation of revenge with every loss I suffered.

I never gave in. You and Ero-Sennin would be proud, wouldn't you?

"_Naruto… I'll be returning to where our master is, so I can see your story… If you ask me… You're the third part that concludes the series… The first part was Jiraiya… He was flawless… But… The second part was me, an almost complete failure… I couldn't even get our master to acknowledge me… Ending the series is the third part… The final work will settle it all! Become such a masterpiece that that failure will be like it was cancelled altogether… Naruto!_"

I believe I did it...I achieved what many have died for. Despite my actions towards the end...I believe that the story of the Disciples of Peace...has ended on a rather pleasant note.

As death and darkness consumes me...I know I can die with a smile on my face.

Why? Because I'm Uzumaki Naruto, Gama Sennin of _Myōbokuzan, _Rokudaime Hokage of Konohagakure no Soto, Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Yoko, Ace of the Allied Shinobi Forces, inheritor of the Will of Fire, and the most unpredictable shinobi in the world! I am the one who defeated Uchiha Madara...Uchiha Sasuke...at the cost of my own life. I am the one who achieved my masters dream of creating a peaceful world. And I made my parents proud. That and most importantly of all...I lived and died as a shinobi. If nothing else, I died the way I wanted. With a bang!

As an old bastard once said to me...death is but the next great adventure. Now, let's see if the afterlife can handle me, dattebayo!

Dammit...I thought I solved that shit years ago.

* * *

Slowly, bright blue eyes opened up to the world around him.

Quickly adjusting the light, he found himself at the aftermath of his final battle between Uchiha Madara and Uchiha Sasuke.

It certainly wasn't a pretty sight.

Tree's were tossed and upturned, the earth beneath them charred. Numerous craters littered the area and some of the remaining tree's were still on fire. Naruto had to admit, however, that the greatest and most awe inspiring piece of debris out there, had to be the massive meteor that Madara had brought down on him. That hurt like a bitch when it hit.

Not to much longer, after surveying the damaged battlefield, did Naruto notice the shinobi arriving.

Kakashi, Shikamaru, and Gaara arrived first, seeing as how they had been battling with Tobi not to far away. If he had to guess, he imagined they had some help as well.

Neji, Tenten, and a heavily injured Lee appeared next. Followed by a half-dead Gai, Chouji, Ino, and Sai. Shino and Kiba appeared from the sky. And Sakura appeared, bleeding heavily, walking to stand near Kakashi.

Many other shinobi arrived at the battlefield...awe expressed on their faces.

They huddled around something and cries of anguish could be heard.

A golden eyebrow raised in question and he quickly moved into the crowed to see what the commotion was all about. What he saw ended up shaking him to his very core.

There, on the ground, bloody and beaten, laid himself. His red coat with black flames was torn in many places, his green Jonin vest was ripped open, and he had a strangely calming smile on his face.

Naruto's breath was caught in his throat as he watched as many shinobi openly wept as Sakura pronounced him dead. Hell, he felt himself tearing up at the sight. Looking around, he noticed no one had looked at him once or announced his presence, solidifying the fact that he was dead.

Taking a deep breath, Naruto walked away from the crowded area, his eyes closed.

He was dead. Sasuke, in his last desperate attempt at revenge...had actually managed to do the deed.

Damn, that's depressing.

His eyes snapped open at the sound of clapping.

"Arara, he took that quite well, wouldn't you say...Sosuke?" came a flippant inquiry.

Slowly tensing his muscles, Naruto turned his head to see the most curious and strange sight.

Before him stood two relatively tall men.

The first of the two was a man with long, straight blond hair, brown eyes, and quite the overbite. The man beside him had a charming smile, scholarly brown hair, and brown eyes and glasses. Something about that man's eyes that put Naruto on edge. He seemed harmful enough, but in the world of shinobi, one learned quickly that appearances were incredibly deceiving.

They both wore shihakusho, although the blond man wore a white haori and the brown haired man wore a badge on his arm with the kanji for 'Five' on it.

It all seemed kind of strange to Naruto.

The brown haired man, Sosuke apparently, replied with a light smile. "Indeed, Hirako-taicho. The reiatsu he's expelling is...impressive to say the least."

This 'Hirako-taicho' nodded in agreement, before taking a step forward.

"Well then...ugh...what's your name again?" the older blond asked sheepishly.

Naruto eyed him for a moment, before grinning. "Uzumaki Naruto, Rokudaime Hokage of Konoha."

Hirako returned Naruto's grin with his own. "Gobantai Taicho, Hirako Shinji at your service." he replied with a mock bow.

Pointing towards the man next to him, Shinji pointed. "And this is my Fukutaicho, Aizen Sosuke."

Aizen bowed his head lightly upon the introduction, a small smile on his lips.

Naruto smiled at him, placing the unease about the man in the back of his mind for the moment. Turning his gaze back to Shinji, he tilted his head in question.

"So...why are you here?" he asked.

Shinji blinked. "Well...you do know your dead, right?" he asked, lazily scratching the back of his head.

Naruto nodded absentmindedly. "Yeah, I kinda guessed that when they openly pronounced me dead." He replied, pointing back towards the group of mourning shinobi.

Shinji winced a little. "Yeah, that's always somewhat rough. Well, gaki, we are Shinigami. Our job is to-"

The Captain of the Fifth Division wasn't able to finish his sentence as an unmanly scream from Naruto interrupted his thought process.

"W-What the hell? Shinigami? You look nothing like him! He's supposed to be...well...hideous and creepy and have the feeling of dead and what not on him and..." Naruto continued to rant, causing Aizen to tilt his head slightly in confusion and Shinji to sweatdrop.

"Look, I think I may know where your getting your idea on us, but I assure you, the being that you normally recognize as the Shinigami...is not what it, we, are nor what we normally do." Shinji stated.

That happened to stop the ranting blond mid-rant and blink owlishly at him.

"So then...what do you do? What's your job?" Naruto asked.

"We are...guides of a sort. We guide new souls, like you, to Soul Society."

"Soul Society?"

"Hmm," Shinji tapped his chin, exchanging a look with Aizen. "It's what you would call heaven."

"Ah..." Naruto said, nodding his head in understanding.

"Along with that, we also purify Hollow."

"Hollow?"

"Corrupted spirits that aren't purified, who lose all sense of humanity and feast on souls."

Processing that information, Naruto nodded.

"I see...are they powerful?"

Shinji paused to think. "No, not normally. However, there are many different classifications for Hollow, but that's a discussion for another time."

Naruto accepted that silently with another nod.

"What are the rankings and organizational structure of the Shinigami?"

Shinji sweat dropped at having to play twenty-questions, but he simply shrugged it off. The less time for paper-work the better.

"Well, we're separated into 13 Divisions, the Gotei 13. Each division is headed by a Captain, while the the entire Gotei is lead by the Soutaicho, who happens to be the Captain of the 1st Division. In total, there are twenty seated positions within a squad, including the Captain and Lieutenant."

Naruto paused. _"Hmm, so it's kinda like us Shinobi...kinda. Not really. Regardless, I'd probably get more action by joining them than simply lounging about. Old habits die hard."_

"Do you think I would be able to join?"

Shinji's eyes filled with mischief and he nodded. "Judging by your reiryoku and reiatsu (Spiritual Power and Spiritual Pressure), I'd say they'd be more than pleased with your presence."

"Especially sense he has an immense amount of power that hasn't been seen from sometime. Hell, even now it's borderline Captain level, and that's saying something."

"So what now?" Naruto asked.

"Now, seeing as I've filled you in on the basic details, I'll be performing a Konso(Soul Burial) on you, to send you to the Soul Society. You should arrive somewhere near the Shinigami Academy. Since you want to join, head in and sign up. I'm pretty sure they're still accepting applications and what not." Shinji replied.

Naruto couldn't help but grin.

"Hell yeah! Soul Society here I come!"

Aizen chuckled lightly and Shinji smiled.

"Your quite the exuberant fellow, aren't you?" Shinji said, unsheathing his blade smoothly.

Then, in one quick motion, he quickly and lightly tapped the blond on the head.

The effect was immediate and Naruto began to quickly glow and dissipate.

However, before he was completely gone, he allowed for one last, sad glance back at the people he would be leaving. While happy that the greatest threats the Elemental Nations had ever seen were now dead and gone, allowing the world to finally be able to transfer into a consistent peace, he was still filled with sorrow at having to leave his friends and loved ones.

_"Well, it seems that the Tale of Uzumaki Naruto...will just be starting." _he thought, as he finally left the plane of the living.

Hirako and Aizen watched him go.

"It seems as though we shall be getting quite the recruit." Aizen said at last after minutes of silence.

Shinji nodded. "Indeed, Sosuke. He just might be surprising." Turning his back to the mourning Shinobi, he opened a senkaimon.

"Let's go...Sosuke." he said, before walking into the gate.

Aizen stood back just a bit longer, his eyes glinting. "Hmm...we'll see just who you are...Uzumaki Naruto."

And with that, the Shinigami left.

* * *

**(A/N:You know, this was shorter than expected and I'm not all to personally pleased with how it started. I personally thought Naruto was a bit to quiet and what not, but that could just be the shock of being dead and stuff. *shrug* Oh well, he'll be talking and pranking soon enough. As usual, I hoped you enjoyed it. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask. And please review if you read. Not meaning to sound selfish, despite how I kinda am, but it makes me feel appreciated. Eh, I'm a needy bitch, lol. Anyways, like I said. Read, Enjoy, Review. Mhm.**

**As for the story, I know I could have gone into everybody's reactions upon his death, but really, I'm a lazy bastard and really didn't feel like having to go through that. To reiterate the A/N above, this is taking place...oh, maybe forty to twenty years before the Turn Back the Pendulum Arc. And just to clear things up before anyone asks, yes, he shall become a powerful and dangerous Shinigami. No, his Zanpakuto will not be Kyuubi nor will he have an inner hollow. No, he won't be insanely powerful to the point in which he'll curbstomp the fuck out of anyone he meets. Yes, he should graduate the Academy relatively quickly. No, I will not be taking suggestions on Zanpakuto(But your more than willing to message me in regards to it) and no, I will not make this a harem. Nor will I take any suggestions on pairings...if there will even be pairings. Sorry, but I had to clear that up before it even began.**

**The next chapter should be up not to much longer after this. Hopefully you guys reading this and the response to the story should let me know if I should continue. Until then, ****Ja ne)**


	2. Back to the Academy

**(A/N: Well here we are. Chapter 2 is up and going. Remember, read and review guys. Just so you know, pairings are pretty much up in the air until Naruto becomes an official Soul Reaper *shrug* I have a good idea who it could possibly be, but I probably won't tell you till later. So, enough reviews about the pairings. Haha.****)**

Disclaimer: You would think that they would realize that this is fanfiction and that there's no way in hell any of us would be writing this stuff if we actually owned the damn thing.

Inspired by_ Soul Chess_, by draconichero21

* * *

"Good lord, that donkey toothed bastard was actually serious when he said there was an Academy."

Running a hand through his golden locks, he sighed. The Academy. Again. Hell, he'd be lucky if he passed this one. He barely did last time.

"Even in death I'm plagued by going to school." Naruto growled, before taking a deep breath and heading into the building.

Signing up wasn't really all to much of a problem. Of course, wandering the halls for an hour and a half looking for the exact location was a pain in the ass, but Naruto hardly ever had the keenest sense of direction. That was Kakashi. Upon signing up, Naruto was required to give a showing of reiryoku, to make sure he'd be eligible for the academy. He assumed it was like gathering chakra and he was happy to say it was close enough. It was curious to see how the amount of spirit energy he put off knocked the examiner off his feet, but he simply shrugged. He'd always been blessed with a bunch of energy.

Not only that, but he had to take a test. Several actually. The first was, Kami help him, a written test that took over two bloody hours for him to complete. Honestly it was like hell on earth...or heaven...or whatever you would call it in Soul Society. However, much to his delight, the next three tests were practical.

The second exam was a spar with some instructor or another to see where his hand-to-hand skills were, and despite the fact that Taijutsu wasn't his strongest subject as a shinobi, he was definitely no pushover and promptly defeated the instructor, stunning all spectating examiners.

The third exam was a spar with another instructor in Zanjutsu(Swordsmanship) in which Naruto lost spectacularly. Well, at least that's what he thought. Honestly, he did fairly well, but his inexperience in using a blade plus the instructors extreme skill with a blade cost him victory.

The fourth and final exam was in Kido. The outcome of it was a bit of a surprise for Naruto. When they told him to take hold of his Reiryoku and speak the spell incantation for Hado #4: Byakurai, the blond had two expectations. Either for jack squat happening or having the spell blow up in his face.

Neither happened. Instead, a massive bolt of lightning erupted from his outstretched fingers the moment

But the test wasn't the worst part. It had to be the uniform. No, he wasn't joking. They gave him a uniform! It was a white male hakama, with blue pants. He hadn't been told exactly what his class schedule would be, but he supposed that they would give it to him before it was actually time for him to head to class.

"And they actually call this heaven?" Naruto muttered, rubbing his chest absentmindedly. He recalled how, right before they gave him his uniform, they had made him call up his reiryoku before forcefully pulling out a katana from his chest. To say it stung would have been an understatement. It had to be just below one of Sakura's chakra enhanced punches.

Which meant it hurt like a bitch.

Looking down at the blade hanging off his hip, he took not on how the hilt was blue and the guard shaped similarly to a curved shuriken.

"If only I had chakra. If only I had chakra..." Naruto muttered fervently, walking towards his room.

Apparently, since he came in the middle of the year, he'd be given a couple of days to study for the classes ahead of him so that he could 'catch up'.

He didn't know which was more funny. The fact that they thought he could catch up almost half-a-years worth of information or the fact that he had to somehow drag himself out of the Academy...again.

Oh the irony.

"So, Room 480B. Certainly sounds pleasant." he mused, walking up to his designated room. Entering, he whistled.

It was certainly better than what he was used to.

It was actually worthy of being called a room!

Taking a meaningful glance around his room once more, he smiled to himself, before some distant, responsible part of himself reminded him that he only had about a day or two to catch up on his studies so he wouldn't be to far behind.

Sighing to himself, he scratched the back of his head and mumbled to himself about Kami's sick sense of humor as he went off to the library to do the one thing he hated more than paperwork...studying.

Little did he know, that during all of that time he was being watched by a certain blond haired captain.

* * *

That night, Naruto had studied numerous things inside of the library, going over the military, political, and economical infrastructure of the Soul Society and the Shinigami.

From what he read, the Captains of the thirteen divisions seemed similar to Five Kage of the Elemental Nations, while the Soutaicho seemed to be the equivalent to the Rikudo Sennin, in terms of the amount of power and respect they commanded.

The Central 46, as he discovered, was similar to the Konoha Council. Well, that or the Daimyo's Council. It was almost the same thing in his books. Arrogant old windbags.

Hell, they even had Noble Houses. Noble bloody Houses! As if he needed to deal with more people with sticks up their asses. He'd dealt with more of them in one lifetime than he was comfortable with, thank you very much.

He also learned that there were three types of spirit particles: reishi, reiryoku and reiatsu. Reishi was free spirit particles in the air. Everything in the Soul Society was made of reishi. In other words all matter was also potential energy. Reiryoku was spiritual power, or the amount of force a soul could exert when utilizing reishi or spiritual energy. The final type, Reiatsu, was spiritual pressure, this was the energy built up inside souls and were especially abundant in soul reapers.

What he happened to read about Zanpakuto, however, managed to catch his attention. Apparently, every Zanpakuto has a name, and that Shinigami who have a large reiatsu and skill may learn the name of their own Zanpakuto. Learning of the name triggers the activation of Shikai(Initial Release) in which the blade gains a special ability unique to itself. Apparently, this was a major power boost to a shinigami and was a prerequisite to high ranked seated officer placements.

In his reading, he noticed the term Bankai(Final Release) used when regarding Captains, but that was all the information he could gather on it.

While he did learn allot, it didn't dismiss the fact that he hated studying. And doing it without his Kage Bunshin made it only worse.

The next day, Naruto found that his textbooks had been delivered to him along with his class schedule, which made him raise an eyebrow. For the rest of that he read and skimmed all he could, just so he could have at the very least an outline of what was to be expected of him.

Did he ever mention he hated the Academy?

Now, on his first official day in the Academy, he was walking to his first class, Advanced Kido.

Glancing down at his schedule, he rubbed his temple for what seemed like the hundredth time that day. It read:

Block 1: Kido - The Advanced Art

Block 2: Hakuda(Hand-To-Hand) - Year 3

Block 3: Zanjutsu - Year 2

Block 4: Hoho(Agility) - Year 1

Block 5: Hollow Cleansing 101 - Year 1

Finally reaching the classroom, Naruto found that he was the last to enter. The instructor, a man who looked to be in his mid thirties with dark hair and dark eyes, glanced at him with appraising eyes.

"Ah, you must be our newest student." he mused to himself, taking in Naruto's appearance. "I can see you don't have much sense of time, seeing as your five minutes late."

Naruto blinked, then checked the time.

"Well I'll be damned, I'm actually late." he muttered to himself.

The instructors voice cut off whatever thought he was on. "My name is Takashi Ramoa and I shall be your Instructor in the art of Kido for the rest of the year. Do not expect for any sympathy whatsoever. I cut no slack, no matter who it is. Do not cause any trouble and please, take a seat..."

"Uzumaki Naruto." Naruto growled out in irritation. The mans tone was condescending and even arrogant.

"Uzumaki Naruto, take a seat and I shall resume class." the man said tersely.

"Oh yeah, this is one of the reasons why I hate the Academy..." Naruto muttered to himself as he took an empty seat in the middle of the classroom.

Takashi kept his gaze on him for another moment, before returning to the rest of the class and beginning his lecture into the exciting details of Hado #31: Shakkaho(Red Fire Cannon) and Bakudo #30: Shitotsu Sansen(Beak-Thrust Tri-Flash).

Placing his chin into his propped up hands, Naruto watched the class continue with a bored expression on his face. And it was now that he actually felt a pang of loneliness.

Back in Konoha, while he was still in the Academy, he had at least had some friends to pass the time with. Who enjoyed the thrill of sneaking out of class and pranking unsuspecting villagers. Kiba, Chouji, Shikamaru...hell, they even got Shino to join them a couple of times.

Now, he was alone...again.

"Ah, the good old days." he muttered sadly to himself, closing his eyes.

However, he was broken from his musings by a light tap on his shoulder. Opening his eyes, he turned around to see a boy who looked to be around his age, with dark purple/black hair and forest green colored eyes.

"Yeah?" Naruto asked.

The boy seemed to take a moment, gathering his wits, before responding.

"Just wanted to let you know not to take Takashi-sensei too seriously. He might seem like a big strict grouch, but he's a pretty decent guy, plus he knows plenty of Kido. He's even the fifth seat of the 5th Division!" he whispered.

Naruto's eyes widened slightly at that. He knew all about the seated officer rankings and how the lower the number, the stronger the shinigami was. Takashi being a fifth seat meant he was definitely no pushover.

Taking in the information, Naruto smiled widely at the boy.

"Wow, that's actually kind of cool. Thanks for the info. My names Uzumaki Naruto." he greeted, holding out a hand in greeting.

The boy blinked before matching Naruto's smile and grasping his hand. "Shuugo Keita."

"Uzumaki! Shuugo! I will not allow any disruption in this classroom. Learn to be quiet during your detention!" Takashi snapped from the front of the class.

Naruto and Keita grinned sheepishly, Naruto letting out a half-hearted "Sorry." and the rest of the class began snickering at the duo.

Keita chuckled again. "This may be the start of a beautiful friendship."

Naruto nodded. "Yeah, but we have to do something about Takashi-teme over there."

Keita blinked in confusion. "Do something?"

He paled slightly at the devious look on Naruto's face.

"Ooh, you know..." Naruto began, before an eraser far heavier than it should be slammed into his face, knocking him over in his chair.

"Dammit Uzumaki! Shuugo! Double detentions! Don't make me speak to you again unless you want to be used as practice dummies for our testing." Takashi threatened.

Naruto rose up from the floor, irritation evident on his face by his twitching left eye.

"Bastard...I'll get my revenge..."

Keita simply chuckled again. "He does deserve it."

Naruto's devious look became downright vicious as a smirk crossed his face. "Yes...yes he does. You, my new friend, have just designated yourself as my partner in crime."

* * *

Naruto and Keita developed rather quick liking to each other and had almost every class but Hollow Cleansing together.

For days, after classes, they would spar together or practice Kido and Hoho. And when they weren't practicing, they were pranking the student body.

At the moment they were outside in a stone courtyard, where their Zanjutsu class would take place. Their instructor, an old and extremely experienced retired shinigami, by the name of Neisho Soran, had set up a class tournament so as to asses Naruto's skills himself.

They were using bokken, wooden swords, for the spars.

To say the least, Naruto was surprised. He had only had some experience in his past life where he actually a katana of any kind. He remembered having Tenten show him a thing or two that happened to save his life during the many ambushes that he encountered in his quest to end the Fourth Great Shinobi War.

She must have taught him a lot. He was by no means a master, compared to the likes of Killer Bee, Sasuke, Tenten, and the Seven Swordsman of Kirigakure, but he could use and kill effectively with the blade.

The boy he was sparring had some skill with a blade, but he was far to uncertain in his movements for said skill to actually make a difference.

Maneuvering around a somewhat clumsy thrust made by his opponent, Naruto quickly slashed at his opponents now exposed, making the poor boy stumble to the ground.

When he tried to roll up, he found the wooden tip of Naruto's blade at his throat.

"Winner, Uzumaki Naruto." Neisho said with a pleased smile.

Naruto calmly removed the weapon away from his opponents throat, before holding out his hand to help him up. The boy took it and soon after both were grinning.

Before he could say anything, he heard clapping. Turning his head, the former Hokage saw Neisho clapping.

"Very good, Naruto. I must say, for someone with no formal training with a blade, you are quite skilled. That pleases me." he said, his eyes twinkling somewhat. "However, what pleases me more is your sense of honor and camaraderie with those who are and are not your enemies. Such honor is rare to those who take up the path of the blade."

Naruto blinked, before blushing in embarrassment.

"Ne, it was nothing, Neisho-sensei." he replied.

This seemed to make Neisho smile even more.

"Your humility is a trait that should be treasured. I believe that with some more training and dedication, you will become a very accomplished swordsman." the old man said. He turned his gaze to the rest of the class and gave them a reassuring smile.

"That goes for all of you. With enough practice and dedication, you can achieve almost anything you set your mind to. Remember, believe in your own skill. Now, back to work. I want team spars to commence. Two on two. Those of you who win, will not be made to clean the dojo and this area. Those of you who lose...well...good luck." Neisho ordered.

This snapped many of the students, including Keita and Naruto, to attention, who then gathered into groups of two and then started pairing off and finding opponents.

However, unknown to them, they were being watched from the walls of the courtyard.

"Hirako-taicho, why exactly are you stalking the boy...Uzumaki-san?" asked the 5th Division Vice-Captain, Sosuke Aizen.

The man in question, sweatdropped and sighed.

"First off Aizen, it's not stalking. It's observing. Second, your hear too, so if I'm stalking, your stalking." the blond haired captain of the Fifth Division replied in a monotone.

Aizen did not respond to his Captain's comments, but simply decided to be quiet and observe.

Shinji sighed. Aizen was always like this when curious.

"I'm observing him because I'm curious to see how long it'll take him to graduate. That, and Yoruichi and several others have developed an interest in him from our and the Academies reports."

Aizen "Ah'd." For a moment, before becoming quiet.

Shinji let loose a small giggle. "His growth rate is incredible. Only a week into the Academy and he's at the top of the leaderboard in Zanjutsu, the top 10 in Kido, top of his class in Hakuda, and improving spectacularly in Hoho. With the skills he'll develop, plus that monstrous reiatsu he has, he'll be a prime candidate for the taking with the other Captains. But we cannot allow that! We must have him!" he stated with another giggle.

Aizen tilted his head. Did his Captain just...giggle? Twice? However, unnoticed by his superior, Aizen's calculating brown eyes watched as Naruto interacted with his class. Indeed, his growth rate was incredible, but he would have to wait before casting judgement.

_"Let's see just how far you go...Uzumaki Naruto."_ he thought.

Leaning back, Shinji let out a breath. "Eh, I might as well go pick him up to take him to see his curious admirers, especially since Yoruichi-tacho is breathing down my neck."

Rubbing the back of his head, Shinji stretched his back. "I won't be back for some time, Souske. Take care of that paperwork and keep Hiyori out of my damn office. I'm tired of having to clean up the paint she always leaves."

With that said, Shinji vanished with a quick shunpo, leaving Aizen all alone on the wall.

Aizen watched the spot where his Captain once stood, before shaking his head.

"You are a fool, Hirako Shinji."

* * *

"Hey Tenshi, how soon until I can see what your hiding under there?" Naruto leered, pointing towards the girl in question's bosom.

The girl, who looked to be only slightly older than Naruto, blushed at the leer. She had bluish-gray hair with silver eyes. She was slightly shorter than Naruto and seemed to take offence whenever it was pointed out. She had a somewhat moderate chest, but that didn't stop the unpredictable blond from following his sensei's legacy.

They were all at lunch now, with Naruto sitting with Keita and several other students he had made acquaintances out of.

As he opened to leer again, the door to the lunch hall opened and none other than Hirako Shinji walked in.

As all eyes turned to the newcomer, they widened when they saw it was a Captain.

The blond haired captain's eyes swept over the hall until he saw Naruto, before vanishing and appearing infront of him.

"You!" Naruto exclaimed, falling backwards, finger pointing at the Captain.

"Yo!" Shinji greeted with a small grin.

* * *

**(A/N: Well, there you go, Chapter 2. I personally don't like writing these type of introductory chapters but, as they say: Practice makes perfect. Anyways, how'd you like it? Was it to simple? Not detailed enough? Not enough character interaction? What? Also, some feedback on Keita would be wonderful. Do you like him? Hate him? Feel indifferent or undecided? Let me know. He will have a major role in the story, so tell me what you expect to see and/or hope to see. Any suggestions or critics? Anyone? Ah well, remember, read and review. I'm not gonna bitch about reviews, but just know that I can't really improve in my writing or plot wise without feedback. But, whatever. Ja ne.)**


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